


Better With You

by EnigmaticAnomaly



Series: Detroit: Become Obsessed [2]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Android serial killer, F/M, Gavin has a cat, Gavin may be slightly out OOC because he is a 'lovable' ass by the end, Gavins ears turn red a lot, I am so sorry I know nothing about programming or hacking, I will put an explanation of my other OFC in the notes, Not Beta Read, Prosthetics, Team 'Game Gavin is a shit human but fandom Gavin makes me melt', Team 'for the love of god someone give us a redemption arc', body modification (well not really but you will understand when it comes up), but it would be cool if you read both!, but you don't have to read that first, hacker character, rated Mature for swearing, so if I get stuff wrong please forgive me, this is connected to my other story 'We all need Someone to lose'
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-01
Updated: 2018-08-01
Packaged: 2019-06-19 19:27:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15516942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EnigmaticAnomaly/pseuds/EnigmaticAnomaly
Summary: Credited for being the only person to ever crack Cyberlifes programs, Eve is considered one of the best Hackers in the US. But when someone starts using her program to take control of Androids and kill them... Well she has something to say about that.Detective Douchebag is pretty hot too...Set after the Pacifist Ending.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Thank you for reading!  
> If you have not read the first work in the series please do so, but if you aren't interested that is fine too! I do have my Original Character from that story in this one so I will leave a little description here on her so this will make more sense:  
> Audrey is an Android Technician that previously worked for Cyberlife, she now works for DPD as a sort of medic for the androids there. She and Connor are a thing, and Hank is pretty fond of her. Gavin has been pretty neutral towards her, but honestly hes an ass to everyone so hey.
> 
> Enjoy!

A dull ache behind her eyes felt like it was slowly cleving her skull in half as she sat in the brightly lit interrogation room. Eve was more surprised than concerned when she was brought in, manhandled really, by a smartass detective with a cliche leather jacket and stereotypical bad attitude. She had eluded the cops for  _ years _ , the only reason she had been pulled in now was because the rent-a-cop just  _ had _ to check her bag.

The headache was either from lack of sleep or the ample amount of light in the drab little room. Eve let her face fall into her hands, auburn curls pooling on the table, before turning to look at the two way mirror. The light in there made her freckled skin look sickly and her dark eyes seemed to sink into her face.

“Who wants to play the good cop and bring me some Aspirin?” She called out boredly.

 

 

“I think we let her sit long enough.” Hank glanced up from his tablet, waiting for the files Connor had pulled up to scan in.

“She fucking  _ punched _ me, she can wait.” Gavin laughed aggressively as he crossed his arms over his chest.

“I probably would have hit you too if you were grabbing at my bag.” Audrey announced as she walked into the observation room, the door sliding shut behind her. She fixed Gavin with a skeptical look.

“You aren’t even supposed to be in here,  _ Grease Monkey. _ ” The Detective glowered at her before jerking a thumb at Connor and Hank. “It’s bad enough I’m stuck with a drunk and a plastic asshole.”

“Gavin, shut the hell up.” Hank sounded more like an exhausted parent than a police Lieutenant. What sort of joke was the universe trying to pull, having these three working a case together?

“Did you find anything, Audrey?” Connor asked, ignoring Gavin all together.

“I asked around with some of my old Cyberlife contacts, no one has ever heard of a hacker named ‘Terra Evans’. Honestly they go by handles anyway, so I wasn’t expecting to get anything.” She blinked down at her PDA before looking back at the three men in the room, brow furrowed. “How does someone go off the grid like this in this day and age?”

“If you’re a good enough hacker you can.” Hank mused from his seat at the table.

“What makes you think she even  _ is _ a hacker?” Audrey placed her hands on her hips and gave Gavin an expectant look. 

This was the real reason Gavin had to work with Connor and Hank; anything hacker related was their area now. Their recent case was high priority and they were following this lead on Gavins hunch. It was up for debate whether or not he was just after a peice of the glory, another way to achieve a promotion or some kind of recognition. Actually, there was no question about it. That had to be the only reason Gavin would bother trying to work with Hanks and Connor.

“I found a modified biomechanics scanner in her bag.” He answered but sounding annoyed, as usual. 

“That’s it?” Audrey pushed. “I have two that I modified myself, that doesn’t mean I’m a hacker.”

“It was a gut feeling, okay? Jesus why am I explaining this to  _ you _ ?” The moody detective threw his hands up before heading for the door.

“It would be unwise to send Detective Reed in to the interrogation, he already holds a bad rapport with the suspect and only has a 29% chance of getting anything useful with a 70% chance of making her less responsive.” Connors words stopped Gavin in his tracks.

“What’s the other one percent?” He asked sardonically. 

“That she will attempt to strike you again.” Connors deadpan delivery actually had Gavin grinning before he pointed at the android.

“You are fucking dreaming if you think you’re going in there, Plastic Prick,” He narrowed his eyes dangerously at the android to cover up his slight amusement. “This is  _ my _ suspect.”

“And this is  _ our _ investigation.” Hank barked at the detective before heaving a sigh and handing the tablet in defeat. “But it looks like your hunch was right.”

Gavin took the tablet from the lieutenant and Audrey leaned to read the file over his shoulder. She grabbed his arm to move the tablet so she could read better, not believing what she was seeing. The triumphant smile he shot at Audrey was infuriating.

“You can’t be serious…” She gaped at Hank before looking back at Gavin who was all too satisfied with himself. There would be no living with him after this.

“So, you think she has something to do with your investigation then?” He sounded all to eager. “Am I working the case?”

Hank gave a defeated groan and Gavin smirked.

“You still aren’t running the goddamn interrogation. Connor is right, you already pissed the girl off.” Hank stood from his chair and held a hand up to stop Gavin before he could even start arguing. “Connor isn’t going in either. I’m gunna do it.”

“What the fuck ever.” The other man fumed as he threw himself down into the now empty chair, mumbling about taking orders from a drunk. Hank just rolled his eyes and grabbed the tablet from Gavins hands before leaving the room.

 

 

The door to the interrogation room clicked open and an older man with shaggy gray hair walked in looking like he didn’t want to be there. Eve could relate. He ambled over to place a small plastic bottle of aspirin and a bottle of water on the table before sitting down. Eve eyed the bottle before picking it up, inspecting the label and twisting the top open to see that the it was already half empty.

“I’m Lieutenant Anderson.” He sounded as annoyed as he looked.

“I didn’t think that would actually work.” She popped a few bitter tablets into her mouth and took a swig from her water bottle before eyeing the man. “You don’t look like ‘good’ cop kinda guy.”

“That’s ‘cause I’m not.” He answered gruffly as he leaned forward to lean on his elbows with a tablet in his hands. “Terra Evans, 37, Bartender from Georgia.”

“Good to know you can read an ID.” Eve replied flatly but narrowed her eyes when the detective chuckled.

“A fake ID,” He poked at something on the tablet and Eve saw an old picture of herself come up through the back of the clear glass. “Says here your name is Evelyn Tardiff, you’re 29 and you’re a hacker from Massachusetts.”

“Well shit, that sounds more exciting doesn’t it?” Eve tried to sound nonshelaunt but could do little to stop her heart from pounding and her mind from racing.  _ Like she was going to be nailed all because she got sloppy on an Alias. Fucking idiot. _

“Code name;  _ Theta _ . You have been stealing information from large companies to sell to private buyers for years, until you hacked Cyberlife a few years ago. You leaked… well everything from code violations, to lawsuits, to the treatment of Androids.” The detective seemed more impressed as he read on. “Seems like you’ve been pretty quiet since then. What causes an elite Black Hat Hacker to turn into a one-hit White Hat?”

“Gray actually… and a lot of good that sunt did at the time, nobody gave a crap about Android rights until Markus and the revolution.” Remembering the trouble she had gone through for such an underwhelming reaction from the populus made her cringe. “I didn’t finish the job and my reputation tanked.”

“Why didn’t you finish the job?” This guy was talking to her like he had know her for years, he seemed all too comfortable in the interrogation room. Eve chewed the inside of her cheek, wondering why it mattered to him. She let out a sighed, deciding that telling the truth at this point couldn’t make her situation any worse.

“I had limited time once I got in, running away from protective viruses and cannibalistic programs… I found footage of how they…  _ test _ the durability of their Androids before mass production while I was looking for calibration specs.” When her eyes met the detectives she knew she didn’t have to elaborate. “I had to make a decision, steel the specs and blueprints, or expose what I found… apparently I should have just gone for the money.”

“You’re an Android supporter?” The gruff Lieutenant seemed skeptical as he watched her with discerning blue eyes, as if what she were saying wasn’t adding up. Again…  _ why did that matter _ ?

“Yea,” Eve shrugged as she leaned back in her chair, pulling on the cuffs that held her hands to the table. “I was in the business of creating alias’ for Androids that were fleeing the US during the Revolution last year.”

“Hopefully you did a better job with those than you did on yours…” He raised a brow at her. “37? From Georgia?”

“It’s the accent isn’t it?” There was no humor on the Detectives face as he leaned back to study her.

“I am investigating a string of Android centered Murders. Someone is finding a way to hack into their programing to make them commit crimes before permanently frying and deactivating them.” Eves heart dropped at his words. 

“Because Androids firewalls are copies of the Cyberlife mainframes’…” Why hadn’t she thought of that? A weakness in Cyberlifes system was a weakness in the Androids as well.

“You’ve hacked into Cyberlife before-” He stopped when Eve sat straight up with fire in her eyes.

“ _ No! _ ” Even couldn’t stop herself from shouting. “I would  _ never _ hack an Android like that, that’s fucking  _ sick _ . It’s essentially mind control, it’s horribly invasive and they are aware of it when it happens.”

“You are the only one to ever hack Cyberlifes programs.” His tone was matter of fact but he was watching her with a wary expression.

“That isn’t true. Someone hacked them just a few months ago, right after the bill for Android rights was signed.” She corrected him wondering how he didn’t know that. “It was all over the news.”

“We put that in your file, the pattern and program were the same.” There was curiosity in his voice now as he leaned forward to study her reaction.

“What? No that wasn’t me, I never hit the same system twice. Normally once they figure out they’ve been attacked,the system Administrator with enforce the weak spot.” Eve blinked back at him in confusion. Silence fell on the room while Detective Anderson watched her, brow furrowed as his eyes bored into her. She could tell he was trying to decide whether to believe her and Eve desperately tried to rack her brain for anything that would help her case. She could think of nothing.

“Then whoever is doing this is using your algorithms, back doors or whatever the hell you Cybercriminals use.” Eve thought she was going to be sick, she had never meant to expose Cyberlifes shortcomings so someone else could exploit them to cause  _ real _ damage. Her goal had been to make a few bucks and knock the company down a few pegs. Now someone was using a copy of her program to break through the Firewall of deviants and  _ kill them. _

“Th-that shouldn’t be impossible… I cover my tracks. I double and triple check to make sure I can’t be followed. I even leave traps so other hackers get hung up and caught.” She knew she was incriminating herself, this was essentially a confession, but if Android lives were at stake she couldn’t just keep quiet. “Look I don’t have the patience to explain it all to you, but trust me I leave no trace when I run these programs and if I do I make sure I can’t be tracked. That’s why I havent been caught before now; I built my program from scratch to be as undetectable as functionally possible.”

“Well either you aren't as good as you think and someone stole your program, or it was you.” He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back. “Got any proof it wasn’t?”

“Hook me up to a fucking lie detector, I don’t care. I am not the person doing this.” She paused for a moment before venturing her question. “What did they take?”

“From what we can tell? Nothing.” The Detective scrolled down the tablet. “It looked like they did it just to prove they could.”

“Or they left something behind…” She was given a curious hum. “They could have done it in order to leave a Virus.”

“I think with all the professionals Cyberlife has they would noticed that.” Detective Anderson scoffed.

“All the professions in their arsenal, and two different people hacked in without getting caught.” Eve couldn’t keep the disdain from her voice. “If they didn’t take or leave anything that means they were testing their program. Your murders probably started not long after that.”

“Could  _ you _ find who is doing this?” The words caught her off guard along with the sincerity in his weathered features. “Honestly, I don’t have enough to pin the recent Cyber murders on you, but if you help us figure out who is doing this I can do something about the other charges.”

“Detective Anderson,” Eve gripped at the chains holding her wrist to the table as she leaned forward to hold his gaze. “I would find this shit bag for free.”

“You can call me, Hank.” The wily grin that spread across the surly detectives face made Eve think that this was exactly what he had planned all along. She couldn't help but like the old man.


	2. Chapter 2

It wasn’t long after that Eve had followed the Detective- Hank- out into the wide open Bullpen of desks. He had stopped at his own, gestured to it and instructed her to ‘sit her ass down and don’t move’. Falling unceremoniously into Hanks chair, she kicked her feet up onto the desk and watch him walk into the Captains fishbowl of an office. He was followed closely by Detective douchebag that had brought her in.

“Hey, you’re that Deviant hunter than helped with the Revolution right?” Eve had recognized the Android sitting across from her.

“Yes, my name is Connor, it is nice to meet you Miss Tardiff.” He greeted her pleasantly. “The Lieutenant asked me to keep an eye on you until he sorts things out with the Captain.”

“Ugh, please call me Eve.” She scrunched her nose at the way he addressed her causing the Android to grin. When Eve nodded towards the office where all three men could be seen taking turns yelling at each other Connor followed her line of sight. “Are they always like that, or am I just that special?”

“Just another Tuesday I’m afraid.” Connor eyed the office with only mild concern as Hank and the other Detective exited the room, the older man looking slightly less hostile than the other.

“Eve,” Hank addressed her as they approached the desk. “You’ve met Detective Reed, he is going to be your Handler while you help us on the case.”

“You’re kidding right?” She practically whined. _ Why did it have to be this asshole? _

“Afraid not, Princess.” Gavin looked just as pleased with all of this as she did.

“Can’t I have Robocop?” The joke did not go unnoticed by Hank but he only sighed and shook his head.

“We need extra help on this case,” He seemed to be explaining as much to Connor as he was to Eve. She only just noticed the look of discomfort on the Androids face. “The Captain decided that having Gavin be the girls Handler would make things easier for us to focus on the foot work. We can all agree that no one is happy with this except for the fucking Captain.”

“I’ll play nice if he does.” Eve eyed Gavin grudgingly and he gave a noncommittal ‘hmph’.

“I’m getting to old for this shit.” Hank slapped the souls of her shoes and she moved them from his desk. “Gavin, bring her to Audreys office so she can get set up. I have a truck load of paperwork to do because of all of this.”

“Whatever.” Gavin motioned for Eve to follow him out of the bullpen. He lead her down a bright clinically white hallway and Eve wondered why everything in this station was so damn bright.

“So are we?” Eve questioned and he turned to look at her from the corner of his eye as they reached the last door on the left. “Going to play nice?” 

“You gonna fucking punch me again?” There was something close to a grin on his face, but his tone was still hostile and Eve couldn't get a good read on him. She had known men like him before; aggressive, full of fire and ambition. Normally she very happily avoided them, now she was stuck with this one a a nanny.  _ At least he was cute. _

“Well that, Detective...” Eve cocked her head to the side with the prettiest, sly little smile she could muster and took a step forward to block the door. She was a little surprised to see back away slightly ears turning a bright shade of red… was he  _ embarrassed _ ? “Depends entirely on you...”

“Just get in the damn office.” He mumbled as he reached past her to activate the door and steered her inside. Eve was surprised to find that the room almost felt cozy. It was cluttered with Android parts, evidence bags and tools, but somehow it didn’t feel messy. A woman a little older than Eve sat hunched over a work bench, glasses low on the bridge of her nose as she inspected what looked like a motherboard for an android.

“Gavin, I told you to knock.” She didn’t look up from what she was doing, but pushed a lock of blond hair back into the very messy bun at the back of her head. 

“You got a place for the Hacker?” He asked as he walked around Eve to stand at the womans work bench. She finally looked up and blinked at the two of them almost owlishly.

“Oh so Fowler agreed?” A large warm smile spread across her face and Eve couldn’t help but smile back. “My names Audrey, you’re Eve right?”

“Yea,” Eve stepped from behind Gavin to eye the motherboard Audrey was working on. “Please tell me that isn’t from a live Android…”

“Oh! N-no! I- This is-” Audrey’s stammering was cut off by Gavins cruel laughter.

“Audrey hurt a Hunk of Plastic? I think she would rather shoot a Human point blank.” Eve noted the disdain Gavin held for Androids and glanced back at Audrey who seemed unphased.

“Shoot you maybe.” The other woman said with little affection, little but still there, as she busied herself clearing off a desk on the other side of the room. “Nothing major, just the foot, maybe the shoulder.”

“Bitch.” Gavin mumbled as he leaned against a bookcase, he wore a sneer but there was amusement in his eyes. 

“The Motherboard belonged to Android from the case, I was trying to see what specifically was being damaged to cause permanent shut down. I wanted to see if something could be done  _ physically _ to stop the short circuit.” Audrey explained before turning back to look at her with a stack of e-books in her hands, revealing that there was in fact a terminal at the second desk. “But honestly the damage is so extensive, the only hope of learning anything would be through the programs themselves. Which I can’t do, but I am sure that you can?”

“What the fuck are you even talking about,  _ Grease Monkey? _ ” Eve was already starting to get sick of Gavins big mouth. She pointed towards Audrey and spoke in a mock slow voice.

“ _ Hardware, _ ” Then pointed to her self. “ _ Software. _ Hardware, Software. Get it?”

“Fuck off.” He pushed off the bookcase and stalked out the door, Eve imagined that if it weren’t an electric door Gavin would have slammed it behind him.

“I wish I could tell you that his bark was worse than his bite,” Audrey shook her head as she glanced at the door. “But Gavin is pretty unpredictable. You seem like you can handle yourself though.”

“I’m not too worried.” Eve assured her as sighed at the closed door. “Is he always like that?”

“For the most part, he seems to be in a pretty bad mood today though...” Audrey shook her head. “Honestly if you ignore him he normally shuts up.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. “ Eve chuckled as she inspected the terminal set up.

“I can get you more tech later, just make a list of what you need.” The other woman offered as she set back to work on the Motherboard. Eve was about to answer when she noticed that Audrey was fully engrossed in what she was doing now. She just smiled at the other woman and booted up the computer rather than interrupting her further.

 

“There’s just one thing that doesn’t make sense.” Gavin gave her a hard stare over the hood of his car as he jerked the door open.

“Just one?” She asked sarcastically as she slid into the passenger seat, waiting for him to enter the car. Audrey had warned her not to feed into Gavins bad attitude but it was just too much fun some times.

“What’s with the jacked up biomechanics scanner?” He asked as settled into the driver's seat and started the car with with a dull rumble.

“It isn’t ‘jacked up’, I modified it to perform a specific task.” Eve knew she was being vague, but she wasn’t sure how the man would react with his obvious disdain for Androids...

“Which is…?” The annoyance was plain in his voice as he pulled the car out of the station parking lot to bring her to the cramped little safe house that Eve was assigned to use for the time being. “Come on, it’s the reason why I arrested you in the first place, what the hell is it for?”

“It’s for me.” When Gavin just gave her a dumbfounded look that still managed to look angry she took a breath and held up her left arm. She gently pressed on her pule point with two fingers from her right. The skin deactivated on the robotic arm to reveal smooth white plastic that disappeared under the sleeve of her shirt.

“ _ Your a fucking Android?!” _ Somehow he sounded more surprised than angry and Eve took that as a good sign.

“No. It’s a prototype prosthetic that connect to my nervous system through a port in my shoulder.  The Biomechanic scanner is to run diagnostics on myself since I can’t do that like an Android would.” She gave a disgusted sighed when Gavin gave her a blank stare. “It’s a ‘smart arm’, okay?”

“So you can like… Interface like an Android?” It seemed like his curiosity was beating his distaste for Androids, but he still looked slightly horrified. Eve pressed her pulse point again and the skin slowly morphed back into being.

“No not like that. It’s more like having a PDA or a computer on me at all times. I still have to manually run programs, but the touch feature is pretty handy when I am hacking on site.” The more she explained the more Gavin seemed to relax though he still seemed to be conflicted about something.

“That’s a pretty high tech prosthetic. I would have never guessed that it wasn’t…” He left the sentence hanging, unsure of the best way to explain.

“It’s a prototype. I volunteered as a research participant and I turned out to be the best candidate for the procedure.” Why was she telling him this? She didn't owe this asshole any explanations, and yet here she was. It was silent in the car for a long time after that. The only sounds were the murmur of the radio, the sound of the engine and occasionally the click of the blinker.

“How did you lose your arm?” She looked up at Gavin and studied his face. Most people didn’t ask that question, either feeling too awkward or assuming she had chosen the prosthetic. But it seemed that it was in Gavins nature to ask questions, he was innately curious and that seemed to drive him in his work. It would have been a more endearing characteristic if he didn’t act like he was  _ owed _ the answers sometimes. Though, right now he seemed uncomfortable, his features taking on a softer expression that Eve couldn’t place and…  _ Were his ears turning pink? _

“It’s really not that interesting.” She chuckled softly.

“You lost an arm… That’s at least a little interesting.” Eves eyes snapped back to Gavin who was watching the road, unphased by what he just said. She wasn't angry or offended... she felt  _ relieved? _ Most people who found out about her arm avoided the topic or regarded it an agonizingly gentle manner that drove Eve crazy. Gavins easy way of talking about it was a nice change of pace.

“I broke my arm when I was a kid, ‘compound fracture of the humerus’. While it was healing, the bone got infected, I don’t really know how or why or whatever but it was resilient to antibiotics. I got pretty sick and my parents had to make the decision to have the arm removed… So yea, not the most action packed story.” Eve fell silent, wondering how Gavin would react. Would he be the ‘ _ I’m so sorry’ _ type? Or  _ ‘That’s terrible’ _ type?

“Well… That isn’t very  _ funny _ is it?” Eve gave him a blank stare as he tried to control a self satisfied grin by casually chewing on his thumb nail.  _ Wait... _

“Did you just…” She couldn’t stop the smile that spread across her face.

“Get it?  _ Humerus _ ?” When he started laughing at his own stupid joke Eve couldn’t help but laugh with him.


	3. Chapter 3

“So… You and Connor?” Eve spun her chair to look at Audrey. The blond was blushing and tried her best to shrug the question off. Eve wasn’t giving up that easily. “Connor and you…?

“Workplace romance is… is just in bad taste.” Audrey huffed as she busied herself checking off a shipment report.

“I think it’s sexy.” She shrugged when the other woman shot her a warning glance. “What? Longing looks? Lingering touches? Sneaking around?”

“Honestly,” Audrey suddenly stared at the ceiling as if trying to make a decision then fixed Eve with a tired look. “Eight months of sneaking around has been really tiring.”

“So just let people know? Who cares? It isn’t like you guys actually  _ work _ together. I doubt it’s against policy or whatever you’re worried about.” She watched as Audrey heaved a sigh.

“Things are… fine how they are.” The other woman seemed tense, as if there was something else that was really holding her back.

“Yea, but they could be  _ better _ .” Eve pointed out

“Look, he would be happier with another Android.” The sudden confession struck Eve silent. “And I haven’t had the guts to tell him that… I’ve been too selfish. I’m not... “

“He looks pretty damn happy with you.” Eve was pleased to see a small smile tug at Audreys lips. “I don’t think he really cares if you’re a human or and Android, he just genuinely seems to like being with you and seeing you happy. You guys have something really nice Audrey.”

“Thank you, Eve…” Audrey said before scanning over the tablet propped up on her work bench with a small sigh but looking considerably less miserable.

“I just hope you wash his mouth out with soap before you decide to play tonsil hockey.” Eve shuttered remembering all of the things she had seen Connor stick in his mouth in just the past few weeks.

“His Forensic Analysis Systems are equipped with bio hazard protocols that sanitize the sampling mechanisms after every use.” Audrey spoke off handedly but turned to gape at Eve after a moment, as if realizing what she had said.

“ _ Oh? _ ” She was giving Audrey a surprised smirk as the other woman turned red, again. “So you’ve put thought into this then?”

“I… Well... “ Audrey quickly looked at her watch. “I have to get going, I told Hank I would I would feed Sumo while him and Connor are on the stake out.”

“Excuses.” Eve teased.

“Do you need anything? I can bring you breakfast in the morning, the junk in the vending machines isn’t good to eat everyday.” Audrey offered eagerly as she packed up her things.

If Eve had learned anything about the other woman in the past few weeks it was that she had a heart made of solid gold. Once she had found out that Eve was essentially homeless, Audrey had just about lost her mind trying to have her stay at her place. Even with Eve explaining that it was  _ on purpose _ as a way to stay off grid, she was still adamant.

“For the last time, I’m fine.” She smiled, at the crest fallen woman. The truth was that Eve really did like Audrey, but she would feel guilty using her hospitality since she wasn’t sure how long she was going to be sticking around...

“Fine… but I’m bringing you coffee.” And somehow Eve couldn’t find it in herself to argue. She watched her leave and wondered if they could actually remain friends after all of this was said and done. Eve knew better than to get her hopes up.

Her line of work hadn’t given her many chances to make any real friendships. Eve was constantly moving around from city to city, she had a system that she stuck closely too. Bank accounts under fake aliases, go bags hidden in train station lockers, self storage units and abandoned warehouses. She was prepared to ghost at any moment. 

Staying off grid and keeping a low profile was practically impossible with the technology available. Eve had gone as far making it seem like she had never existed prior to 12 years ago, breaking into census databases an removing all traces she could find.

In fact, after their talk in the car, Gavin might be the only person to know anything about her before she was 18. If someone actually wanted to find anything on her old life they would have to do so the old fashioned way; paper birth certificates and paper files from her hometown. Not impossible, but also not worth the effort.

The deal that Hank had made for her would expunge most of her record, leaving only minor crimes and fines. At most Eve would be on probation with a tracker for a the better side of a year and have pay a few thousand dollars in fins. Pretty generous considering she would have been in jail for  a few years otherwise. That was fine, but Eve wasn’t suited for other work, Hacking and code was all she knew. There wasn't much else she could do otherwise...

“You staying here tonight or am I bringing you to a safe house?” Gavins voice pulled her from her thoughts. He was leaning against the door frame looking bored and she wondered how long he had been there, and how long she had been zoning out at her console.

“I’m just gonna stay here.” She answered before leaning forward in her chair with a yawn. Eve hated the safe house; it wasn’t small but the way it was set up made it feel claustrophobic and all of the electric door locks and screens made her jittery alone at night.

“Ya know,” Gavin drawled as he moved to sit in Audreys chair, leaning back and slouching low with his arms crossed. “Those cots are meant for Officers between shifts, not Tech Nerds.”

“No one even uses them.” Eve replied curtly before turning back to her set up, ignoring the smirk Gavin was giving her. “That safe house is garbage anyway.”

“It’s better than where you were staying.” He pointed out as he watched her type away. He wasn’t completely wrong, the old warehouse where she was squatting was drafty and broken down but at least it had been tech free and less confining.

“I just don’t like it okay?” Eve cursed herself for sounding defensive and though Gavin was going to drop it after a long pause. No such luck.

“You don’t feel safe there, huh?” The tone of Gavins voice had lost hits sharp edge, sounding almost concerned. Eve had to force herself not to glance back at the Detective. “The officer watching the place is a good guy, been on the force for a while, you shouldn’t-”

“That isn’t it.” Turning to look at him now Eve could see that he was trying to be kind, trying to comfort her, but he still seemed annoyed. She was starting to think that was just his permanent facial expression. He raised his eyebrows and shrugged, silently asking her to continue. “I just don’t like being surrounded by that much Tech okay? It's easy to feel safe when everything is electronic and locked up tight, but with the right programs someone can control your whole damn house right down to your fridge.”

“Don’t you... have a computer for a arm?” The deadpan way he spoke about it was refreshing in a way and Eve couldn't help the laugh that escaped her mouth. Gavin looked pleased with himself, the self satisfied smirk almost tolerable this time.

“Okay, you got me there.” She smiled at him and the man looked almost taken aback by it, but said nothing in return. He simply plastered a scowl back on his face and looked away, mumbling something offensive under his breath.

“When are you gonna find this fucker anyway?” Gavin asked after a moment, snooping around Audreys desk. “This baby sitting gig is getting old.”

“I’m close, and I have a tracker virus rigged to infect his program when I do catch him. But every time I think I have him cornered he makes a back door and disappears entirely leaving broken codes and Worms to cover his tracks. If I weren't trying to cover my own tracks and make sure he doesn’t detect me I would have had him by now. I have a few more tricks up my sleeve though.” Eve could feel Gavins vacant stare on the back of her head and rolled her eyes as she continued to run her program. “He’s very good, but I’m better. It’s just taking some time.” 

“Why are you worried that he will find out you are tracking him?” He was trying his best to sound disinterested.

“Same reason you don’t want to be seen on a stake out.” Eve was trying to put it in a way he would understand. “If the suspect figures out they are being followed they can either ghost you, lead you somewhere else or become violent. Hackers can do the same thing; this guys is so good that if he caught me he would have no problem fucking with my setup here and figuring out where I was.”

“Doesn’t your arm have a Cyberlife program or something?” Gavin seemed to be at a loss for words. “Like a firewall or whatever? Theres are supposed to be the best in the world right?”

“Well yea, it does, but I would rather not run the chance of some criminal back tracing my program and destroying the units flash drive or taking control of it like this wacko does. It may have a nice firewall and Malware detecting programs but I would rather not risk it.” Eve looked own at her prosthetic then back at Gavin wondering if he would understand. “It isn’t just some other computer. I may not have any feeling in it but it’s a part of me.”

“Yea… I guess I get it.” Gavin answered quietly looking as though something had just dawned on him. 


	4. Chapter 4

A Styrofoam container was dropped on the desk in front of her and Eve jumped at the sudden distraction from her work. She tugged the earbuds from her ears and let them hang around her neck as she glanced up at Gavin.

“What’s this?” She asked as she popped the container open to look at its contents, there was a sandwich with a pickle spear nestled next to a pile of fries.

“You haven't moved in five hours.” Gavin explained as he sat at Audreys desk to open his own take out container. The Android Technician had taken the rest of the day off and Eve had the office to herself, evidently that meant she forgot basic human needs.

“That means it’s past six, aren't you off duty?” She questioned the detective as she stuck a couple fries in her mouth.

“Can’t you just shut up and eat?” He shot back before taking a bite of his sandwich, ears turning slightly red. Eve grinned before turning back to her food. The silence that fell on the room wasn’t altogether unpleasant.

“But seriously,” Eve questioned after she had finished eating, standing to stretch her disused muscles. She sat on the edge of Audrey workbench to get a better look at Gavin and he spun in the chair to face her. “What are you still doing here?”

“I was catching up on paperwork.” One of his few virtues was that Gavin was a hard worker, goal driven, if sometimes overly ambitious. That being said, he didn’t seem to have a problem with throwing someone to the wolves to get ahead. “I got hungry and figured I would get you something before you started bitching.”

Learning to tell the difference between Gavins front and actual anger was something of an art, and Eve liked to think she had it figured out for the most part. For example; the fact that Gavins ears flushing color was his only tell when he was embarrassed. It was endearing. He would often cover up his discomfort with rude comments or sarcastic banter, but his ears were a dead give away. He would have a spectacular poker face otherwise.

He was also strangely protective of people. For all the times he called Audrey a Grease Monkey and Eve a Tech Nerd, he had a habit checking in every so often, always masked with a sarcastic remark and smug grin. 

Though he acted like he hated Hank and Connor, and Eve imagined that a part of him actually did, something about it was just seemed like an obligatory pretense. She had witnessed him slam another officer into a wall, pinning him there to snarl some warning in their face. She had found out later after eavesdropping to the offending officer that they had been saying something about Hanks son. She had to have Audrey explain, and felt rather pleased with Gavins reaction afterwards.

He even seemed to go out of his way to explain references and phrases to Connor when he didn’t really have too. At first Eve had assumed he was doing it to make the Android feel stupid, explanations normally punctuated with insults. But every so often, when someone would use an expression he didn’t quite understand, Connor would actually look to Gavin to explain. Without fail, the other man would roll his eyes and do his best to make sense of the idiom to the Android.

It was as if Gavin had the childish view of ‘no one can make fun of you but me’ and Eve found that strangely comforting. He was an asshole, but he was  _ their _ asshole.

_ No, that wasn’t right _ . Eve didn’t belong there, she wasn’t one of the good guys and she certainly didn’t work at the station. She was just holding up her end of a deal, working a contract then she was gone. Attachments were not something she could afford, no matter how much she yearned to have them. It was safer that way, for everyone involved. Eve was a ghost, there one week, gone the next. 

But there was just  _ something _ about this very odd group of people that had been seemingly thrown together that just sort of worked for her…

“You were trying to be  _ nice _ .” Eve accused with a sly grin and Gavin rolled his eyes. “Admit it, you like me.”

“Dream on,  _ Tech Nerd _ .” He practically growled the words at her, the annoyed rumble in his voice ever so slightly enticing. Eve slid down from the work table and stood in front of Gavin with her hands balled into fists on her hips.

“Not even just a little bit?” She laughed when he stretched back, tipping the chair slightly so his feet barely touched the floor, hands behind his head to look at her down his nose. He looked too comfortable.

“Not even a little bit.” He confirmed. That cocky smirk was too much when combined with warm eyes and the teasing tone of his voice.

Eve acted without thinking; she leaned down slowly and deliberately to place her hands on both armrests and pushed the chair back down. Gavins feet were forced back to the ground and he looked startled. In an attempt to steady himself his hands shot down to grab onto the armrests, only to cover Eves hands instead. His eyes went wide and eyebrows shot straight up when he realized just how close her face was to his now, a coy smirk gracing her lips. His ears were turning a wonderful shade of pink.

“That’s too bad…” Eve said quietly as she watched Gavins eyes flicker to her lips. She felt his hand ghost up her right forearm as he leaned forward a fraction of an inch. It was enough to feel his breath fan over her face and Eve had to suppress a shutter. 

She had only meant to tease, to get him flustered and maybe set him off onto a tangent about her being a bitch. Now he was staring up at her with heavily lidded eyes, darkened by some emotion that Eve tried not to place. His lips were slightly parted and she watched as his tongue darted out to wet them. Eves heart was pounding against her chest…  _ shit. _

“Eve,” Connors voice through the door was like an electrical shock to her chest. She quickly straightened up and backed into the work table just as he was entering the room. “I was wondering if I could-oh, hello Detective Reed.”

“Fucking  _ Androids. _ ” Gavin scoffed as he leaned back in the chair again, crossing his arms over his chest again, his ears still a bright red.

“Uh, Connor, was there something you needed.” She asked awkwardly as she carded a hand through her hair. The Android gave the two of them a strange look before venturing his question.

“I was wondering if you would be able to erase a program from my hard drive.” The office fell silent. Gavin stared at Connor in bewilderment and Eve in horror.

“Wait…  _ Why? _ ” Eve stood up from where she was leaning on her desk.

“Isn’t that the same as deleting memory?” Gavin questioned.

“Not at all. This is more like deleting a part of his mind, his  _ personality _ .” Eve couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable.

“The fuck do you want to do that for?” He questioned Connor harshly and the Android looked away as if ashamed. Eve smacked Gavin in the chest and he threw his hands up with a  _ ‘what’ _ ?

“Connor do you want Gavin to leave so we can talk?” She questioned and to her surprise he made to sand without protest.

“No, it isn’t a problem. Detective Reed can stay.” Gavin settled back into the chair awkwardly as Connor continued. “It isn’t one of my main functioning programs. It’s the one that I had used to self test for deviancy and report back to Cyberlife.”

“That should be easy to shut down, why risk removing it and messing with your systems?” Eve pressed gently.

“Last year, after the revolution when Marcus addressed the Free Androids… I pulled a gun and I almost shot him.” Again, the room fell into stunned silence at Connors confession. He was visibly troubled as he watched their expressions. “I was remotely taken over by Cyberlife, and they almost used me to assassinate Markus.”

“Your worried they will try something like that again?” She tried not to sound overly concerned, not wanting to further distress the Android.

“Kamski left an exit through the program… a backdoor that I was able to get to just in time. I believe that they are unable to seize control again because of that.... But the thought that they might...” He paused as if looking for the right words.

“Connor I can’t do that, It would be like-” Eve was surprised when Gavin gave an indignant huff

“If it gives the Plastic peace of mind why not? He just said it wasn’t an important program, and it it’s not running anyway what’s the harm?” He looked between the other two as if just realizing what he said, that he was taking Connors side. The Android was giving him a curious look and Gavin quickly plastered another scowl on his face and shrugged as if to seem indifferent. “I mean I don’t want him going postal and shooting my ass.”

“Try not  _ being _ and ass then.” Eve shot him a cool glare.

“So, could you do it Eve?” Connor questioned again with a hopeful expression.

“Yea… I can do it. If it will make you feel better.”  The goofy smile that spread across Connors face looked so relieved that it almost broke Eves heart. She also noted that Gavin didn’t make a single sarcastic remark… he almost seemed thoughtful.

 

 

“So, are we gunna talk about you sticking up for Connor, or…?” Eve questioned as she watched rain streak across the passenger window of Gavins car. The truth was she wanted to focus on that little revelation and not what almost happened before the Android had walked in.

“Or we could  _ not _ .” He sounded equal parts annoyed and uncomfortable.

“At least you admit to it.” She looked over at him, his elbow propped against the car door and hand cradling his head as he watched the road, the other hand ont he top of the steering wheel. When he caught her studying him Gavin gave a disgusted sigh.

“ _ Fine _ .” Gavins eyes flickered across the road uncomfortably before he continued. “The Plastic has been going all year wondering if someone else is gunna take the wheel, that’s fucked. So I felt bad for him, what of it?”

“I’m not saying there is anything wrong with it.” Eve wondered how Gavin would react if she pointed out that he was feeling  _ empathy _ for an Android. That by doing so he was validating that Connor, in fact, had emotions. Would he deny it? Regress back to his old way of thinking? Or would he accept it? “It’s nice to see you be… well, nice.”

“What, you don’t think I’m nice?” The words were dripping with sarcasm, but Eve could hear the truth of the question underneath. She fixed him with a knowing smirk as he pulled into the parking lot of the safe houses apartment building. He put the car in park and furrowed his brow at her.

“I think you could be if you weren’t so focused on being the biggest ass in the room.” Eve chuckled at Gavins annoyed mumbling as she opened the car door and made her way up the walkway to the apartment building. As much of an asshole as Gavin was, he didn’t drive away until she made it into the building.


	5. Chapter 5

“Statistically speaking, one third of murder cases in the U.S. go unsolved each year. Serial killers make up a large population of that fraction. So I would say that the ground you have been able to help us cover on this investigation is well above average, Eve.” Somehow even Connors methodical way of thinking wasn’t helping her mood. 

Eve had allowed the hacker to slip away again; the address she had sent the duo two turned out to be an empty warehouse. He had managed to set up a damn torrent that lead her to a fake IP address, and the poor Android he had been targeting was probably already deactivated. This guy definitely knew he was being followed now.

“What he’s trying to say, kid, is that you’re not doing a bad job. We’ll get this asshole, you’ll see.” Hank seemed to really believe it despite the tired look on his face as he pulled the old beat up car into the apartment complex’s parking lot.

“Yea but it’s my fault that Android-” Eve stopped abruptly when the bear of a detective rounded on her. From where she sat behind Connor she wondered if the Android was just as intimidated as she was.

“That isn’t your fault. You hear me?” He narrowed his eyes when she didn’t answer. “Ya hear?!”

“Y-yes…” Eve managed and Hank seemed to relax back into his seat. She felt oddly like a scolded child.

“That’s on this psycho, no one else.” He murmured as he turned back to the wheel. “Now get your ass up there and try to get some sleep. Officer Brennan is already posted out front.”

 

 

_ Get some sleep _ . Funny. She sat on the flimsy couch in the living room, flipping through channels on the TV but not really paying attention. The small apartment felt like a hotel room, monochromatic and devoid of any real sign that it was lived in. It was unnerving and not improving her already agitated mood. 

Eve felt like her whole body was on edge, all she could think about was some poor Android somewhere having their brain fried because she wasn’t quick enough, wasn't  _ good enough _ … She had hacked fucking  _ Cyberlife _ and had gotten away with it but she couldn’t catch this program stealing  _ nobody? _

It didn’t help that Eve had been seriously considering staying in Detroit after all of this… At least as seriously as she dared to. That alone was enough to set her on edge. This strange group of dysfunctional people had made Eve feel  _ welcome _ despite past transgressions. Suddenly living a life on the run wasn’t as appealing as staying in Detroit might be...

Audrey had been constantly asking her to do things; go shopping, get coffee or just take lunch together. Whenever Eve caved and joined the other woman, she found that she actually had  _ fun _ . And After helping Connor with the Testing Program, Hank seemed to warm up to her more and the Android was as friendly as ever. Then there was Gavin…

He was by far the most infuriating person she had ever met. Aggressive and arrogant, he always seemed to have a complaint or insult on the tip of his tong. But he also seemed to care is his own strange, self destructive way. As if admitting that he gave a crap was taboo. As if letting people in would set his life crumbling down. Eve could relate.

She would freely admit that the Detective was attractive, Eve wasn't worried about letting that slip. It was the fact that whenever she was around Gavin she didn’t feel like she had to keep up appearances. She was  _ comfortable  _ around him and that was something entirely new and almost scary. He was an asshole, so she could be too; there was no need for pretense or small talk. There was something freeing about it. Eve wondered if something like that could ever actually work.

Eve glanced at the digital clock that projected on the wall, glowing a somber blue above the mostly empty bookcase. 1:35 A.M _._ _Get some sleep my ass._

A noise out in the hall caught her attention, footsteps coming from the west side of the hall, where the back door was. Eve turned back to the TV, it was probably just another tenant coming in from a night out.

Then the footsteps stopped… right outside her door. Eve sat stock still, eyes trained on the door through the Kitchen where two shadows interrupted the yellow light from the hall. Someone was standing outside her door, not knocking, not calling out to her. Then she heard it; the person was tapping on a glass keypad.  _ They were hacking the alarm system. _

She flung herself from the couch as quietly as she could and sprinted down the hall on light feet. Silently slipping into the bedroom she hit the door lock just as she heard the front door deactivate and slide open. It was only a matter of time, and Eve had to think fast.

Pressing her left hand firmly to the electronic lock next to the door, the skin on her prosthetic slid away. Eve activated the touch screen keyboard on her forearm and set to work deactivating the alarm on the bedroom door. It switched into panic mode with a soft beep and sent the room in lock down.... That was when she made a decision. 

Eve quickly started downloading the tracker virus into the hard drive of the alarm system. Just as the intruder reached the bedroom door she pulled her hand away from the frame, the download teetering at 99%.

Tapping the back of her wrist, a holographic screen projected from the back of her forearm. Eve used the keypad to type a hurried message to Officer Brennan outside. She could hear whoever was outside swear once they realized they would have to reboot the entire internal security system. Eve had only bought herself a few minutes, and she hoped that was enough. 

Retreating to the corner of the room and ducking behind the bed, Eve waited with her eyes squeezed shut and knees against her chest. Counting the seconds down and listening to the intruders growing frustration through the metal door. They slammed a fist against the door with an angry shout and Eve couldn’t help but let out a startled shriek.

“I know you’re in there you little bitch!” The voice belonged to an older man; rough, like he was a smoker. “You think you can fucking Dox me? You wait until I get in there, you’ll wish you had left me to those fucking Androids!”

There was an audible click as the door unlocked and Eve could have sworn her heart stopped.... But the door never opened, the sound of hurried footsteps came from came from the kitchen. The man outside her door swore before she heard him take off into the second bedroom.

“Evelyn? Evelyn, it’s officer Brennan! Are you hurt?” The officers voice called out from the hallway.

“He’s in the second bedroom!” Eve voice was hoarse from fear and she heard the officer slowly make his way down the hall to the other bedroom. It was silent for a long moment before she heard footsteps come back to her door. Eves heart was pounding, what if it wasn’t Officer Brennan?

“Evelyn?” Relief washed over her as the Officer entered the room, gun at the ready. He checked all the corners of the room before holstering his gun and offering to help her up. “Looks like he’s gone.”

 

Poor Officer Brennan, Eve could hear Hanks shouting from where she sat at the foot of the bed. The man was getting torn, not one, but two new assholes in the small living room and there was nothing that Eve could have said that would have discouraged the Lieutenant. The Officer that had taken her statement earlier was standing outside the bedroom door while officers combed the apartment, Connor among them. Eve wondered how much they could really find, the man had only been there a few minutes.

She felt cold, and stiff… and stupid. The adrenaline was slowly leaving her system leaving her tired and shaky. Why was it that all she could do was run and hide? The guy was right there, just on the other side of that door and he still got away.

“Hey Tech Nerd.” Eve looked up to see Gavin standing in the doorway. He looked nonchalant, but his hair was slightly ruffled and his bloodshot eyes were searching her face.  _ Had he gotten out of bed to come here? _ “Heard you had a rough night.”

“Yea.” She watched as he waved the other offer away and entered the room to lean against the dresser next to the door and watch the bustle outside. When it was obvious Eve wasn’t going to elaborate Gavin gave her another searching glance.

“They already take your statement?” He asked as he ran a hand through his messed up hair.

“They treated me like some sort of trauma victim.” She knew her voice was shaky, she knew she sounded childish, but the officers soft words had almost sounded condescending. At least Gavin was talking to her like normal… at least whatever normal was for them. Eve clenched her fists to stop her hands from shaking and that was when she noticed it...

“Hey… uh… why is your hand blinking?” Gavin sounded vaguely concerned but mostly weirded out by the small blue light that was blinking opaquely through the skin on the back of her hand,

“I… I downloaded the tracking Virus into the alarm system so he would pick it up.” Eve pressed on the back of her hand, a keyboard projecting on her forearm again and a screen in the air above it. “It isn’t active right now… but if it managed to get embedded into his program we will have his location once he uses-”

“You shouldn’t have done that, Eve. What if he had back hacked you or whatever the fuck you said he could do?” Gavin sounded angry with her, pushing himself up from leaning against the dresser and fixing her with a heated look. When she flinched away from him and looked up with fearful eyes he seemed momentarily horrified at her reaction. He stepped back, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.  _ Why the hell had that scared her? _

“I… I had to do  _ something _ .” There was no fight in her words, none of her normal joking or teasing, just desperation. Gavin reached forward like he was going to place a hand on her arm but stopped himself, instead he raised it to rub the back of his neck and sighed down at her.

“Come on, you’re staying with me tonight.” It was a statement, not an offer. Eve blinked up at him in confusion as Gavin leaned down to haul her duffel bag off the floor next to the bed and onto his shoulder.

“What…” The way he had said it was what took her off guard;  _ Staying with me _ , not  _ staying at my place _ . She wondered if she were just overthinking the situation, but she couldn’t help the small amount of affection she suddenly felt at that moment. 

“Well you sure as hell aren’t staying here, and I’m not taking you all the way back to the station.” He was  _ trying  _ to sound put out by all of this and Eve could see his ears were starting to turn that insistent shade of pink. 

She had know that being kind was something Gavin had issues with, choosing to be distant and rude seemed to be more comfortable for him. The forced scowl he wore now, mixed with occasional nervous glances as he waited for her to response was almost endearing.

“Okay.” Eves voice was small and distant, nothing like her normal laid back and self assured manner of speaking. She suddenly felt too tired to care that Gavin was watching her with troubled eyes.

As they made their way through the apartment no one paid any mind to them, save Connor. He picked his head up from a device the Hacker had dropped and watched them with a curious expression, but said nothing. When Hank started to come into the kitchen from the living room the Android turned abruptly, blocking them from the Lieutenants view and proceeded to go into a long winded explanation on the evidence. Gavin gave a surprised little ‘huh’ but did not comment on the behavior.


	6. Chapter 6

Gavins car was still warm when Eve got in, and she found herself pressing into the seat to soak up more of the warmth. Once he dropped her duffel back unceremoniously in the back seat and slid into the driver's seat he turned the heat on full blast. She wanted to ask how he knew that she was cold, but decided it would sound stupid. 

As the car pulled out of the parking lot Gavin reached over and turned the radio down to a soft hum. The soft murmur of indistinct voices through the slightly crackling speakers mixed with the steady whurr of the engine was strangely calming.

Almost instantly Eves vision blurred, eyes stinging and nose suddenly stuffing up. The tears slid silently down her face as she leaned her chin against her hand to look out the window. She wanted so badly to keep her face hidden form the man sitting next to her but she knew there was little she could do. It was as if being in that warm comforting car had opened the floodgates to her emotions and Eve couldn’t figure out why.

“There are napkins in the glove box.” Gavins voice sounded like it was miles away, but Eve knew he was speaking in a normal tone. She stole a glance at him; there was no judgment on his face, not even pity that would have made her blood boil. He just looked tired and strangely understanding as he watched the road before them.

Eve reached out and pulled the glove box open to rummage around for some brown napkins to try and dry her face. However, no matter how many tears she wiped away, more just took their place. After a long moment of silence Eve took a shuddering breath and Gavin glanced over at her again.

“I-I have no idea why I’m  _ fucking crying _ .” She choked out with a small hiccup of a laugh as she gazed down at the soft paper crumpled in her hands. “I’m such an _ idiot _ .”

“No, you’re in shock.” Gavins voice was matter of fact as he pulled into a parking garage  nestled between two buildings. He put the car in park and sighed when he looked at the clock on his dashboard before turning his gaze to her again. “Up for a little walk? My apartment is right around the corner but I can drop you off out front if you would rather-”

“No… I don’t want...” Ever felt childish for answering so quickly but Gavins lips quirked into a soft grin that, for once, held no mockery. “I don’t want to be alone.”

“Alright, come on.” He leaned back between the two seats to grab her bag before jerking his car door open and rolling out. 

Eve followed him out of the garage and through the dark streets, trying to ignore the fact that she was walking very close to his side. Close enough that their arms kept bumping. She also ignored the fact that he did nothing to put space between the two of them. When they entered the building Gavin gently steered her down the left hallway with a hand on her shoulder and up a flight of well worn wooden stairs.

The apartment was not at all what she imagined. It was a wide open loft with slanted windows left that opened up to the expense of Detroit skyline. The kitchenette sat to the right with a mismatch of appliances, as if they had been replaced at different times. A TV was mounted to the Brick wall next to the door and an oversized black leather couch that looked like it had seen better days sat in the center of the room. Eve noted that there was no dinging table; bottles and take out boxes littering the coffee table. Other than that, the apartment was fairly clean.

Towards the back of the room the wooden floor raised up with two steps into what was fashioned into the bedroom. Two sections of folding walls were set up on either side of the steps to divide the living area and the bedroom. The headboard of the bed was pushed up against the center of the back wall and was unmade; gray, navy and red miss matched bedding strewn across the mattress.  _ So really did roll right out of bed. _

It was decorated how most single men decorated; store bought wall art with a few random movie posters. There was nothing personal on his book shelves, no photos or mementos. Only a few framed work achievements lining the window sills.

“The bathroom is up through the bedroom, first door on the right. The second one is just the closet… So yea.” Gavin rubbed the back of his neck, and eyed the mess on the coffee table.

“This place is… actually really nice, Gavin.” Eve gave a small smile, knowing how foolish she must look with bleary eyes and a red nose,

“Yea well, the pipes make loud noises and it’s fucking cold in the winter.” He mumbled as he carried her duffel back up the steps to the bedroom and dropped it on the foot of the bed, Eve trailing behind.

“I can take the couch.” She offered feeling her chest start to flush at the thought of sleeping in his bed.  _ Seriously? It’s just a bed. What was wrong with her? _

“Nah, it’s fine. I sleep in the living room half the time anyway.” Gavin shrugged as he looked at his watch. “I’m think just going to stay up.”

“Oh… alright…” She shuffled to the side as he came back down and headed for the couch. Before Eve stepped into the bathroom to change she heard him throw himself onto the couch and switch on the TV. 

The bathroom was small and smelled like cheap cologne and something that was just  _ Gavin.  _ Splashing some water on her face helped her feel a little less jittery. Eve leaned over the sink to inspect her face and ran her hand through her hair. Sighing, she changed into a pair of black sweats and an old t shirt before heading back out into the bedroom. 

The top of Gavins head was just visible over the top of the couch from where Eve stood at the foot of the bed. His bare feet were kicked up on the coffee table, that he had apparently cleared off while she was in the bathroom. The TV flickered quietly between channels, as if he wasn't really paying attention, just as she had been doing earlier. As Eve was about to make her way into the living room her foot touched something soft and...  _ alive? _

“Oh!” Eve jumped slightly and watched as the small creature took off around the bed. 

She followed the path it took cautiously and smiled when she found a small, gray spotted tabby peering up at her from under the bedside table with curious gold eyes. She crouched down and held her fingers out, rubbing them together to call the cat to her. 

“It’s okay, I’m sorry I scared you.” Eve spoke softly to the feline, grinning like a fool.

The cat came out with a scratchy  _ meow _ , its tail held high as it rubbed against her knees. Eve happily scooped it up in her arms and held it against her chest with a soft giggle. When she turned around she saw Gavin standing at the foot of the bed, watching with a smirk. He had lost the leather jacket and hoodie, standing in front of her in a pair of jeans and a plain black t shirt. He looked exhausted, and that made Eve feel guilty. Why did he even come out? There were plenty of officers at the scene.

“That’s Mal, don’t let him fool you; he’s a dick.” Gavin chuckled when Eve pressed her nose to the cats and Mal batted at her face harmlessly.

“So he takes after his owner, huh?” She asked as she placed the cat down on the bed where it happily flopped onto its side and started to purr.

“There she is. Good to have you back, Tech Nerd.” The grin fell from his face as Eve made her way around the bed to set him with what she hoped was a sincere gaze.

“ _ Thank you _ , Gavin. I mean it.” She reached out to put a hand on his arm, only a little surprised when he didn’t pull away from the robotic limb.

“Don’t sweat it.” His voice was low as he tried to shrug off the gratitude with reddening ears, as if the words made him uncomfortable.

What was it about this rude, aggressive  _ prick _ whos ears turned red when he was embarrassed that made her heart beat faster? Why did the way that he called her  _ Tech Nerd _ make her feel like it was the most charming nickname she ever had? Why was she wondering how those dark locks felt between her fingers?

Eve carefully reached out with her other hand and slid it up the side of his neck to rest just under his ear, thumb brushing his cheek. She pulled Gavin closer and he complied with little resistance, his hands came to rest hesitantly on her waist. But when she leaned forward, her lips so close to his, she felt the pressure of his hands holding her in place.

“Eve,” His eyes finally met hers, full of conflicting emotions. “You should go to bed.”

“ _ Come with me. _ ” She practically begged against his lips and Eve felt his body tense, hands gripping her waist a little tighter.

“You’re tired… You’ve been through some shit… You aren’t thinking straight.” Gavin pulled back slightly and Eve reluctantly let him, but didn’t let go. Neither did he.

“Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?” She questioned him and was rewarded with a small smile.  _ An actual smile. _ It wasn’t a cocky grin or an aggressive smirk, it was a genuine smile and  _ fuck _ , did it look good on him. Suddenly he took a step back, untangling himself from her arms, looking defensive and uncomfortable.

“Just get some sleep alright.” He turned to walk down the steps to the living room.

“But Gavin-” She was cut off by Gavin waving over his shoulder.

“You really want someone to go to bed with you, take Mal.” He called back as he fell onto the couch. Eve watched the back of the couch feeling a little hurt for a moment before turning her gaze to the cat. Mal was curled up in the middle of the unmade bed with miss match sheets; paws stretched out in front of him as he idly kneaded the blanket with a happily squinted face. The cat was cuter anyway.


	7. Chapter 7

“So…” Audrey was giving Eve a suspicious look that was just a little too exaggerated. “You won’t stay at my place but you’ll stay with Gavin?”

“He didn’t give me much of a choice to be honest.” Eve rubbed her face before turning her chair to face the other woman.”He was actually nice, well by Gavins standards.... And I was an idiot.”

“What do you mean?” Audrey sounded mildly concerned but mostly curious. 

“I may or may not have tried to kiss him…” Eve gave a guilty grimace when she received a horrified gasp. “And he turned me down and put me to bed with his cat.”

“Wait.... are we talking about the same Gavin?” Audrey looked utterly perplexed, it was like watching a cartoon. “ _ He has a cat?” _

“Yea his name is Mal.” Eve leaned her chin on her hand as she leaned against her desk. 

“So he was actually a gentleman? Didn’t make a pass at you, nothing? Even when you made a pass at him?” When Eve nodded Audrey blinked a few times. “Maybe he really is turning over a new leaf.”

“You’re telling me he use to be worse than this?” Eve had often wondered why Gavin was such an asshole, though once you got use to him it became a part of the rough and tumble charm he had. That being said, it wasn’t hard to imagine him acting worse than he did now.

“It was pretty bad, mostly towards Androids but he was a pretty big dick to just about anyone that got in his way. After the revolution, when humans started coming back to Detroit I was surprised Gavin did too, I figured the Android capital of the world would be the last place he would want to be.” Audrey sighed as she pushed some hair behind her ear and straightened her glasses. “But the past year he’s been  _ trying _ , in his own stupid way. I doubt he would ever admit to it though.”

“If I punched him when I met him a few months ago, imagine if I had met him two years ago?” Eve mused with a satisfied smirk.

“Kiss him apparently.” It was Audreys turn to grin and Eve shot her a glare with very little feeling behind it.

Something occurred to Eve when she really thought about what Audrey just said.

“Do you think it’s because of my arm? Why he turned me down I mean.” The question came out as soon as it popped into her head. Eve suddenly felt realization dawn on her, if Gavin hated Androids what did he think of her? All of his reactions to her it came to mind, none of them were very kind though that might have just been Gavin….

“N-no! Why would that matter?!” Audrey didn’t sound confident in her words at all, apparently the thought hadn’t occurred to her either.

“If he hates Androids, it might matter to him.” For the first time in years Eve felt  _ ashamed _ of her body as she looked at the prosthetic.

She had moved through the stages of grief and loss like that crackpot doctor said. Anger had been hard to get away from for a while and acceptance had been difficult, but she had fucking done it. Ten years of almost perfect confidence, mostly thanks to the super realistic prosthetic, and now she was letting some  _ asshole _ make her feel incomplete? Fuck that, and fuck him.

“Eve I really,  _ really  _ don’t think that’s it…” Audrey trailed off, somehow that made Eve feel even worse.

She knew she was being petulant, she knew that she was digging for a reason to be angry. The way Gavin had abruptly pulled away from her, the way he had come to the scene that late at night when  _ he really didn’t have to _ … How kind he had been that whole night… The real reason he had turned her down wasn’t something Eve was prepared for.

“Hey, it’s fine.” She flashed a smile, though she knew it looked more like a grimace. “He wouldn’t be the first guy to think it was weird.”

“I think it’s amazing.” Audreys voice was small but her eyes were intense.

“Me too.” The smile on Eves face was much more genuine this time.

 

 

It was strange, looking into the interrogation room from the other side of the two way mirror. The stark comparison between the dark room Eve was in and the bright room that held the offending hacker was surreal, like watching a TV. 

It had all been very anticlimactic when they finally brought the Android Serial killer in. He had activated the infected program and Eve had given Hank and Connor his exact location and they picked him up. The guy hadn’t even realized the virus was running through his program. Eve was disappointed.

Rodney Clark, 42, unemployed. Apparently he had gone by the tag ‘Mime’ because his only talent was following other hackers trails and copying their programs.  _ Fucking pathetic _ . And he had followed her lead right through Cyberlifes protective software to kill Androids.  _ Fucking disgusting. _

“You wanna talk to him, Tech Nerd?” Gavin asked from behind her. He had been leaning against the sidewall watching her glower at the idiot in the interrogation room. “I’m sure Hank won’t give a shit.”

“No, he isn’t worth my time.” She glanced back at Gavin before heading for the door.

“You wanna tell me what your problem is?” His words stopped Eve in her tracks and she turned slowly to give him a cold questioning look. Gavin rolled his eyes and pushed off the wall to face her properly. “Don’t play that ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about’ shit, you’re better than that and I don’t have the patience for it.” No answer, Gavin sighed. “Is this about the other night?”

“What does it even matter?” She shot back.  _ Why was she so angry? _   Over some asshole that turned her down…  _ nicely _ ? What the hell was wrong with her?

“You wanna act like a fucking child,  _ fine _ .” Gavin stormed past her with an uninterested look on his face that actually sent a jolt of regret through Eves chest. When the door to the observation room slid shut it took every ounce of self control for her not to punch a hole in it. 

What  _ was _ her problem? So Gavin had turned her down, with good intentions. But it had fucking  _ hurt _ … And that was bad. That meant Eve cared and if she cared and Gavin didn’t…  _ Shit. _

Eve sighed and rolled her shoulders, she would have time to figure all this shit out later. She finally composed herself enough to leave the room, flipping the one way mirror the bird before walking out.

 

 

“Lieutenant Anderson?” The voice was clear and concise, either from an android still integrating into society or stiff with a stick up their ass. Eve turned the corner and stood just to the side of the bullpen to watch the exchange.

“Who wants to know?” Hank was back to her but she could just imagine the skeptical look on his face. The other guy looked less than amused.

“My name is Gregory Pike, I represent Cyberlife’s Trial Studies.” Eve felt her heart sink. “I was informed that you have Miss Evelyn Tardiff in your custody?”

“The hell do you want with her?” Hank straighten up in his chair now.

“I’m right here.” Eve spoke you as she stepped forward and the man set his cold eyes on her. “What do you want?”

“I have come to inform you that you have breached your contract on the Prototype in your possession.” He handed her a tablet that had a document with her signature scrawled at the bottom. “You have used the device for illegal purposes, reflecting badly on Cyberlife as a Company.”

“Like Cyberlife didn’t already have a bad image.” Eve scrolled down through the document, trying to see how much money she owed them.

“Furthermore, you used it to steal information  _ from _ Cyberlife…” The man sighed tiredly. “Miss Tardiff I am here to tell you that we have scheduled the confiscation of the Prototype-”

“ _ That’s her goddamn arm!” _ She registered that Hank was yelling and standing up from his chair in a threatening manner but all Eve could do was stare at the tablet in her hands.  _ Notice of Revocation. _

She couldn’t lift her eyes to look at the man, even as Hank was chewing the man a new one. Not when he explained that per the contract they were giving her a weeks notice. Not when he tried to tell her that they had been generous enough to allow her to keep the port embedded into her should as it would be  _ inhumane  _ to remove it. 

That was when Hank went off the handle and the man had to leave the station to avoid further confrontation. Eve was left holding the tablet, feeling like a hole had just been punched through her chest.  _ She was going to lose her arm all over again. _

“Kid? Are you listening to me?” Hanks voice pulled her from her stupor. He placed a hand on her left shoulder and squeezed over the metal line that seperated skin from plastic. “We are going to figure this out.”

Eve blinked up at him before realizing that Gavin had come over when Hank had started yelling. He was staring after where the man had exited the station and  when his eyes found their way to hers he looked downright livid. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know why. 

“I… I’m going to go see Audrey.” She managed to choke out, her despair thankfully masking the lie. Hank watched her walk away with troubled eyes before turning to say something to Gavin.

But Eve didn’t continue down the hall towards evidence lock up and Audrey’s workshop, she walked right by to get to the fire exit at the back of the station.

 

 

The sky had opened up as Eve had made her way to the dingy bus stop, pouring frigid rain down on the streets of Detroit. She had ran the rest of the way to the station, but it didn’t stop her from getting soaked. The last bus made it’s stop at 11:35 before leaving Detroit, but the station closed at 11, so Eve was forced to sit outside on a cold metal bench.

Hugging herself for warmth, Eve watched her breath puff out in front of her as the rain pelted in straight lines onto the pavement a few feet away. The fluorescent light above her was flickering at uneven intervals with soft clicks and the soda machine to her right was emitting a low rumble. It was comfortable white noise mixed with the constant hush of the rain. Eve was alone at the station, no one else was desperate enough to brave the rain for the last bus out of Detroit that night. 

It had been easy to get out of the Police station, no one had expected her to run for it. After all, she was going to be pardoned of most of what was on her records. Eve wondered how long it had taken them to realize she was gone. She hadn’t been stopped on her way to the self storage that she had hidden a go bag in and she hadn’t been stopped when she withdrew money from one of her alias bank accounts. It wasn’t until Eve reached the bus station that she felt a little more at ease.

“You know you’re still in custody, right?” Eve visibly jumped at the sound of Gavins voice as he stepped out from around the side of the building closest to the empty parking lot. “The paperwork hasn’t gone through yet.”

“You gunna arrest me again?” Eve asked despondently. Gavin heaved a sigh and shoved his hands in the pockets of his jacket. 

“What the hell are you doing, Eve?” He was trying to mask his concern with annoyance, the act was starting to get old.

“I’m waiting for a bus, what does it look like I’m doing?” She looked down the street, hoping to see headlights.

“Could you cut the shit for just one minute?” Gavin let out a humorless laugh.

“Just leave me alone,  _ asshole _ .” She spoke through gritted teeth and pulled her bag closer to her side like a shield. 

“No, you are going to fucking listen to me.” His tone was harsh and Eves eyes snapped to his face. “Hank is back at the station pulling every favor he has trying to see if he can stop this. When I left Connor was analyzing that eighty page contract for the hundredth fucking time. Audrey took the rest of the week off so she could start designing you a  _ new god damn arm. _ ”

“I… I never asked any of you to do anything for me.” Her voice was a lot less cold than she had intended. Instead of sounding accusing and confrontational Eve just sounded lost. “I got myself into this shit, I can get myself out of it.”

“You are just running away.” Gavin challenged. “If you just-”

“ _ Why the fuck do you even care, Gavin?! _ ” Eve shot up off the bench and turned to face him. “I’m just some bitch you had to babysit for the past few months, you should be happy that I’m skipping town. I’m a criminal, you moron, it’s all I know. Did you think I would give up the life I had because you got lucky and got me on a fake ID? What was I gonna do? Stop being the best in the business to be a functional member of society and flip fucking burgers?”

“You have who are willing to  _ help _ you Eve.” Gavin looked more angry than she had ever seen him; jaw clenching, hands balled into fists and eyes glinting in the flickering station lights. “They-”

“ _ Fuck ‘em _ . I didn’t ask for their help.” Eve bent to grab her bag and walk away but was spun back around by a firm hand on her shoulder. She was prepared for shouting, for Gavin to slap another pair of cuffs on her. She wasn’t prepared for the utterly raw expression on his face.

“ _ I want you to say.” _ It was more of a confession than a statement and Eve was struck by what exactly that meant.

“Gavin…” Her tone softened as she tried to weakly pull away, but his grip was firm. Eve knew that he would let her go if she really tried.

“I get it… Pushing people away is a lot easier than dealing with them, being and asshole is safer than being real. I fucking do it all the time. Hell, it’s turned into my whole god damn personality.” He seemed to be struggling with the words, but pushed on in determination. “But when you’re around, I don’t know I just… Fuck. Look I’m not good at this shit. You make me actually  _ want _ to be better.... I fucking care about you, okay?”

All Eve could do was stare at the man in front of her. That was equally the most awkward and most  _ real _ thing anyone had ever said to her.  _ And his ears were bright fucking red. _

“I’ll help you figure the job situation out, Audrey can help with your arm… Just  _ don’t leave. Please.”  _ That was what got her. Eve felt herself flush and looked down at the pavement between them and a self satisfied grin spread across his face.

“I guess… if Audrey can make me a new Prosthetic…” She mumbled, feeling too embarrassed of flattered to look up. “And would need to find a place to stay if-”

_ “Oh, shut up.” _ And before Eve could react Gavin had a hand buried in her damp hair and the other at her hip, pulling her into a demanding, opened mouth kiss. Eve snaked her hands into his jacket and around his waist to hold him him closer. To her disappointment he pulled away from the kiss slightly with a hiss. “Jesus Christ, you’re freezing.”

“Then keep me warm.” Eve gave a lopsided grin before pulling him back into the kiss and burrowing further into his open jacket. Gavin wrapped his arms around her shoulders and waist effectively shielding her from the cold. 

When she started nipping at his bottom lip and her hands started sliding along the waist of his pants to res at his belt buckle he let out a breathy laugh against her lips. He pulled away again to give Eve a cocky grin, the one that she couldn’t decide if she wanted to kiss or slap off his face. He bent to pick up her bag before leaning in to kiss her one more time.

“Get your ass in the car,  _ Tech Nerd _ .” The words murmured against her lips should not have been that enticing.

 


End file.
